INTERNATIONAL: Training camp for striker

25 April 2013

Andy Hall

Beck to team up with Scotland U19 squad

Teenage striker Mark Beck has been rewarded for his efforts with the Scotland U19 side in their 3-2 home win against Sweden in March with a call-up to Ricky Sbragia’s squad for their training camp at the beginning of next month.

Beck, 19, came off the bench to score and to provide an assist on his international debut as Scotland overturned a two-goal first-half deficit to claim an impressive 3-2 win.

He now teams up with players from Celtic, Chelsea and Manchester United in a bid to stake a claim for the squad which will compete in the UEFA U19 European Championships to be held in Lithuania later this year.

“I’m delighted that this has happened,” Beck said. “It’s great to be part of an international set-up and it’s made even better because I didn’t really expect it.

“I knew things had gone well from the last time I was with them but I never really thought anything like this would happen. I thought I did what I had to do really well in the Sweden game and it’s good that it’s led to this.”

On the feedback he received from his last Scotland outing, he said: “Ricky [Sbragia] was a man of few words, to be honest. He shook my hand and told me I’d done well, but he left it at that. I suppose this shows that he must have been impressed with what he’d seen.

“There’s no guarantee that I’ll be involved in the European Championships just because of this, but at least I’ve given myself a chance. I don’t think we have any games organised for this one so I’m going there to train well and to do what I can to make sure I get picked.”

“Working with players from the big clubs is fantastic, but the good thing for me is that I have League One games under my belt,” he said. “My experiences here should help me along the way.

“I do think about putting the Scotland shirt on from when I played back in March, but most of it is still a blur. It was a superb feeling and my granda is over the moon about it all. It’s a very proud feeling and I’d love to have more of it.”

“I think I’ve said before that it’s been a superb season for me overall,” he admitted. “I never expected it to go the way it has. I think the way the gaffer and Kav [Graham Kavanagh] have dealt with us as young lads has been perfect. It’s given us the best possible chance to get better and to improve, and I think we’ve all done that. I have to thank them for that.”

“The season has flown by," he added. "It only feels like a few weeks ago that we were coming back for pre-season training. I look at the stats and see that I scored six goals from it all and I have to rub my eyes to make sure it’s real sometimes.

“Of those I scored I would say that the volley at Yeovil was probably the best of them. But the one I got against Ipswich was probably the one which is best for me on a personal level. It was my first professional goal and the reaction of the fans was unbelievable. That’s because it took us into extra time and then, obviously, we went on to win it.”

“My aim for next season is to get as much pitch time as I can," he concluded. "I’ll knuckle down, work hard through pre-season and see where that takes us.”

United Player subscribers can see a video interview with Mark Beck now. Click HERE to go to the Player platform. Follow the same link for more information on United Player, and to subscribe.